Recently, I have been rewatching the television show West Wing. The show follows a fictional US president, Josiah Bartlett, and the staff of his administration from shortly after their inauguration through the day they are succeeded by the next administration. The series depicts life and work in the White House as equal parts frantic, with issues and decisions coming at you from every direction; frustrating, with constant debates and compromises with political adversaries; and rewarding when the team accomplishes something that matters. From the first episode of the series, whenever the team accomplished something that mattered, there would be a moment of celebration followed by a definitive question from the president: What’s next?
Over the last 18 months, New Foundation Church has navigated an incredibly difficult season. During that time, we survived the greatest threat our congregation has ever faced, reorganized as an independent congregation, and done some great ministry in our community. This month, we are learning about the foundational principles which must undergird everything we say and do going forward, but that only brings us to the definitive question: What’s next?
Today, I want to begin answering that question by sharing the two top priorities on our to-do list. If you have been paying attention, neither of these will surprise you. Yet, there may be some surprises as we examine them more closely.
The first priority we must have is discipleship. In case that term is unfamiliar to you, a disciple was a person who followed Jesus, and discipleship is the work of inviting people to follow him and helping each other follow him better. Over the next few weeks, I will be using this column to discuss how we will do this, but you have already heard the building blocks. The +1 Initiative is our effort to pray daily for, engage weekly, and invite as often as possible those we know who do not yet know Jesus. The One-Hour Challenge is a commitment to spend more time in the Bible and prayer. Our Community Bible Discussion Group is a chance for people to engage with Scriptures and build friendships with others who are trying to follow Jesus. And our Sunday gatherings are an opportunity to hear Scriptures explained and be challenged in our walk with Christ. Eventually, we will re-launch Discover Groups as a series of small group meetings held in different homes on different days and times and led by different people. This leads to several key questions. For example, who will host a group in their home? Who would lead these groups? When would be the best days and times for such groups? These are critical questions that we must begin to consider, but let me put this clearly: if we will not do these things, then there is no point in continuing.
The second priority we must adopt is finding a permanent home. The room where English service is currently meeting will hold a maximum of 30 people, but no one wants to be packed like sardines. In fact, before COVID, studies showed that churches almost never average more than 80% of their maximum seating capacity, and while there have been no new studies done since COVID, I believe that threshold is now closer to 65-70%. This is significant because, for the last few weeks, English service has seen attendances at or above 20. Put another way, we are approaching the ceiling, and we must make some decisions about how to address this. In the short term, we will almost certainly remain at New Hope United Methodist and see about adjusting meeting spaces and times. But in the longer term, we need to begin thinking about securing our own space. Where should that be? What will that look like? How much will that cost? To be frank, this longer term is months – perhaps even a couple of years – away. Yet, these are all questions we must begin today to prayerfully consider and diligently prepare to answer.